


Day Sixty || Candle

by 365daysofsasuhina



Series: 365 Days of SasuHina 2019 [60]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Historical, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-02
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-08 00:07:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17970668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/365daysofsasuhina/pseuds/365daysofsasuhina
Summary: The last thing the lost Uchiha expects to find in the dark and in the mist is a candle...but more mysterious is the woman bearing it.





	Day Sixty || Candle

He’s not sure what to make of the light when he sees it.

Traveling by night isn’t ideal, but...it’s the only option he’s left with. In unfamiliar territory, separated from his band, Sasuke is left wandering the woods after dark. The stars, at least, can guide him whenever he finds a gap in the foliage...and the mist. They were meant to cross the mountains to the lands north...but the trek has proven perilous. Even before he lost his way, they’d suffered losses. Horses breaking legs in the uneven and shifting ground, others wandering out into the vapor. One man even tumbled back down the mountain, too fast to grab and falling too far to have survived.

...but he knows where to end up to find them again. It’s just a matter of getting there.

Descending into a valley between several of the peaks, doing his best to navigate through the fog, he comes up short as the land suddenly evens out. Some kind of...plateau? A few cautious steps reveal an outline in the gloom...a building of some kind?

A few steps more, and he sees the lights.

Candles. Dozens of them. Lanterns, too...the light revealing this isn’t just any building: it’s a shrine. But what on earth is a shrine doing this far up in the mountains?

Hand on his blade’s hilt, Sasuke silently makes his way around toward the entrance. Through a gap in the stone, a tree grows, littered with ema. A chōzubachi fills from a slow dribble of water along the slope, overflowing to run along a small canal and off the plateau to the rest of the mountain. And within, he can hear a single voice softly singing a song of prayer.

...it almost doesn’t feel real.

Wary of trickster kami, he makes his way forward, cleansing himself before stepping into the mouth of the shrine.

Above him, a depiction of a great serpent dragon coils and bears its fangs: a protector deity. A mizuchi: water spirit. Looking over the shrine, Sasuke doesn’t notice the air go quiet, or the figure carefully approaching him.

“...who are you?”

Startling, he half-draws his katana out of reflex. But the only threat he finds is a miko bearing yet another candle. Pale eyes look to him warily, but she doesn’t retreat. For now, he doesn’t answer.

“...you’re an outsider. How did you find this place? Where did you come from?”

Looking to her just as suspiciously, Sasuke slowly sheathes his blade. “...I come from the south. My clan and I were moving north...but I got separated. Wound up here. I don’t mean you any harm.”

Her gaze flickers to his weapon.

“...can you tell me where I am?”

“...no. You should not be here. It’s forbidden.”

“I’ll leave, believe me - I just don’t know how to get over the mountains from here. Please, I -”

Outside, a hiss like a geyser sounds, and he spins toward it, hand back to his hilt.

“...don’t move.” Giving him a glance, the miko moves around him and outside, disappearing into the mist until the light from her candle fades.

Not relinquishing his grip, Sasuke waits.

Minutes pass in silence, and he doesn’t dare disobey. He’s never heard a sound like that before - even now, the hairs on the rear of his neck stand on end. Something’s out there...but what?

Then, blessedly, the light returns.

The miko steps up toward him, still looking wary but a bit less tense. “...she will allow your trespass.”

“She?”

“Our guardian kami. She commands you be given rest in the village, and then guided through to the other side of the peaks come morning. But only if you give your word you will never return.”

Wait...an actual spirit spoke to this woman? Sasuke’s superstitious, sure - better to be cautious. But he’s not a true believer like some others he knows. “...who is this kami?”

“The spirit of the valley’s river. Few are permitted to see her, fewer still to speak to her. I alone act as her voice to the humans. Count yourself lucky she doesn’t seek your life. Take this bargain, stranger.”

Well, he had no intent to find this place anyway, let alone stay. “...fine. I’ll do as asked. All I care about is getting back to my kinsmen.”

“...this way.”

They leave the shrine behind, and take a winding path down to the valley floor, peppered with torī gates that make him shiver. Whatever this place is...it’s certainly strange. Magic or not, holy or not...he’ll be glad to leave it.

She leads him with her candle to the belly of the vale, and it’s then he can see through the fog: houses, and roads. All nestled between the tall peaks he and his kin have struggled to cross.

Though mostly asleep for the night, a few stragglers look to him warily, clearly able to mark him as an outsider.

“None carry weapons here. You make them nervous.”

“I can hardly disarm myself,” he counters. “I’m a samurai, not a farmer.”

“Such arts are not practiced here. It is not necessary. Carry your blade, but be mindful what it means.”

Eventually they reach a modest home, and she leads him inside. “You may sleep here. Come morning, a guide will take you to the end of the valley. From there...you will be on your own. Never come back.”

Before she can leave, however...Sasuke takes her wrist. Her grip on the candle wavers, spilling hot wax along her skin.

“...what is this place?”

“None of your concern.”

“Then who are you?”

“...you may call me Hinata. I am the miko of the shrine you invaded.”

“It wasn’t my intent!”

“Then you should be all the more eager to leave in the morning.”

They stare at each other, dark and light eyes flickering in search of more.

“...you really think you spoke to a god?”

“I know I did. It is she who keeps us safe. And it is by your grace she allows you passage. She could have ordered you killed.”

“And who here, in a place without swords, would kill a swordsman?”

“She would. With tooth and claw. Then, perhaps, you would believe.”

Still looking wholly unconvinced, he lets her go. “...and if I ever  _ do _ come back?”

“I suspect she will act. Strangers are not permitted here...strangers bring misfortune.”

“Then how did your people get here?”

“...we were chosen. Abandoned by those around us...and taken in by the god.” Hinata looks to him thoughtfully. “...that may be why she spared you.”

“I wasn’t abandoned. I got lost.”

The miko offers no reply. Instead, she simply tells him, “...rest. You’ve a long journey ahead of you.” A tug tries to free her wrist, but he has one more question.

“...and will I see you before I go?”

“No. I will be attending my duties. Instead, I will wish you good fortune now...and warn you one last time: do not come back.” She frees her arm, giving him a small bow before leaving him to his devices.

Watching her go, Sasuke considers the space. Spartan, but nothing to sneeze at. Though rural and antiquated, this place seems well-kept...wherever, and  _ what _ ever it is.

Abandoning his gear, he takes to the bedroll, sleeping a few hours before the sun rises.

Another person of pale eyes takes him from the house north. Neither make attempts at conversation until they arrive.

“Follow that path. Do not waver from it, or the mist will swallow you.”

“Duly noted,” the Uchiha replies gruffly. Doing as told, he takes several paces before looking back.

They’re gone.

Part of him wonders if this was all nothing but a fever dream: an illusion cast by the fog addling his senses. But the memory of the miko doesn’t fade.

Despite her warning...he can’t help but feel he’ll see her again.

**Author's Note:**

> This...isn't really want I want this to be, but it's late and I don't have time for a do-over OTL
> 
> This is meant to be in a verse technically centered around an RPC of mine, but...I adapted it a bit for this prompt. The theme kinda left me without any ideas for my typical verses, so we have this instead. I'm...really not sure I like it. It feels rushed, but I had a long day and lost track of time, so...less to work with OTL
> 
> Anyway, that's all for tonight. Hopefully tomorrow will be better ^^; Either way, thanks for reading~


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